Hi, this is my first story. As you can already see it's kinda crappy and was first published on Quotev (that's why there's the references to that site). And basically thanks for clicking on the link (you probably thought it'll be more cool). But just read it.
Deep in the depths of an underground Quotev secret Agency...
"We are doing all we can, our search groups have not found anything yet."
"Quotev is a small place. No one could hide anything for long. Unless this involves people of other dimensions, it is impossible to not have found anything by now."
"We are doing all we can. We just need more time."
A figure gestures at the empty corner, which was shrouded in shadows. On an empty surface, a computer was opened but there were no commands typed into it. The green line just sat there, blinking, blinking.
The feed was nowhere to be found. Even the outer realms had been searched, every account no matter how many followers were there were searched, even the old Quotev update history was searched at the junk, but the mere presence of any feed was not there. Something was terribly wrong. Something that could affect everyone in Quotev, whether they liked it or not.
This affects you. The reader, right now, reading the very words on your screen. Looking into the past, from the future. You aren't supposed to see this. This is what is happening, so I have to tell you. This is the hard truth.
[Proton's POV]
I was roughly shaken awake by a hard push to my shoulder. The familiar sounds of the Quotev city sounds came to my ears, as I opened my eyes and they adjusted to the bright light streaming into them. A silhouette blocked some of the light, while it moved hurriedly across my vision. "Seth?"
"Where did the feed go?" He demanded.
I checked the clock above and said tiredly, "It's only 5 am, why are you even awake? What feed?"
"The feed isn't there!" He shouted.
The thought of the feed not being there was so bizarre I thought I was dreaming. I rolled over and continued sleeping, langour taking over.
It felt like seconds later when I awoke, hands reaching the edge of the bed before pulling myself up. My vision started clearing, and I heard sounds of Quotev everyday life. However, there was one thing missing - the long crowd of people outside their houses, queuing to get the earliest morning feed. The rest of the information came after, but the morning one was what they used to find out what happened in the night.
"The feed is shut off," I heard someone shout. Shut off? Then there would not be any updates. There probably wasn't any reason why the feed would be shut off. This was real bad. There wouldn't be any broadcasting or notices. We probably wouldn't know anything happening around the edges of Quotev, if at all.
But wouldn't that be the best reason to shut the feed off ? It was so make getting information harder. All we would be able to do was to rely on rumours and what people said. In the midst of my thought, my vision flashed back, into a place that sent chills down my spine.
"You know what you can do, Paige," a calm female voice coaxed. Her voice was soft, like the wind that was blowing over the ground. Around me was fog in the darkness, and nothing could be seen. I could not even see the speaker, who sounded younger than me. "Follow your instincts, react to the pulses of adrenalin through your veins. You are needed."
"Who are you? Why can't I see you?" I said into the darkness as it swallowed my words. "Why am I here?"
"Ah, many questions you have. Who I am, you will find out later, for you may come across me in your travels. You are here because you need to know." The voice trailed away smoothly, but it wasn't answering my question.
" Know what ?" I said in annoyance.
"You need to know what you need to do to get the feed back. It is not shut off as they have said. Someone has taken it. As I said, you will find out the culprit later. Bring people you know with you, because each of their talents are needed. Don't delay any longer. The feed must be recovered soon."
I cocked my head, taking in all the information she told me. I have never done those 'save the world' things, but it seemed that I was truly needed. To finally be able to do something extraordinary, I was excited.
My vision turned back to reality, as the thought slowly sank in. I was likely the only one who could do it best. First, I needed people to go with, like what the voice had said. That could be Seth, and although he wasn't okay with working with Alexia, she was still someone needed on the 'team'. I just didn't know who was 'Paige'.
I turned to find Seth, just to realise he had silently stood behind me. How was I supposed to tell Seth about this?
Don't worry, he knows.
"We need to go," I finally said after a long while of hesitation.
"Yeah, she said we needed to get Alexia for some reason," Seth said, even though I could hear he had grudgingly agreed to whatever she told him.
[Alexia's POV]
I really hated saying this, but I had to be truthful. After that fire-guy-burning-the-room incident, I kept away from any more contact with Proton or whoever she was. She was creepy, with her ice powers, totally not my type. Maybe playing Bridge all day was better.
Until today, she just had to show up again in the Headquarters. And even worse, it had to involve Seth. That was the end if it, then? No. We had to go on a journey of sorts, since she said the Quotev feed was missing. Heck, the feed? We didn't even need the feed. Most of our events made to the feed first.
So anyway, back to the request made by Proton. I'd told her that if Seth bothered me again, he dies. Unless I die first. Which only means that I respawn back in Bridge without any points. Nothing to lose. Simple.
So we took our stuff and hiked back to Quotev mainland after getting 64 speed potions. I had warned them that they could die, but they always shrugged it off as a joke. Maybe if I kept quiet things would go better.
It was days before we managed to find a spot Proton recognised. She said she knew it was correct, even though she had never been here. The ground was made of old tiling, corrosive rain running down the little 'rivers' between the tiles. The place was deserted, yellow leaves blowing in one was as the grey clouds hung lowly. It basically looked haunted.
Then the next thing to think about was shelter. The houses where the floorboards creaked and the shops where the wooden tables were covered in cobwebs and dust bunnies behind the doors and cracked windows and broken vases.
At last, we found a fairly habitable house near the middle of the run-down place. Seth was asked to take first guard, while we split the hours between three of us. Then, we somehow managed to sleep after minutes of arguing that the air was too dusty.
Alexia... a smooth voice called to me. I turned on my bed, thinking that I had imagined the sound.
You're not imagining. You have to listen.
No... I was dreaming.
There is no time. The feed is being destroyed. You have to move! The voice urged me, harder this time. Only you can save the feed. Your friends only help.
What?
I talked back.
Tell your friends they need to hurry. You have to follow. Only you can save the feed, lieutenant.
There was a pause.
Heat... Wake up. Wake up!
I awoke with a start. Heat... Yes, that was right. The air was burning. I smelt burnt wood. Oh crap...
It was 4 am in the morning. The sky was still dark, but the fires blazing around glared into my eyes. Damn, Seth was gone. Don't tell me he was trying to kill me again.
I shook Proton awake, and when her eyes opened, the air cooled down remarkably, although I was still sweating. She grabbed the bags and heaved them onto her shoulder, before running out of the doorway. The fire, like it had an evil life on its own, crackled.
"Se-" I started, but Proton stopped me and shushed, leading me towards the edges of the place. And Seth was there, but he was not creating the fire. He was being attacked by a lion-goat-snake-creature-that-could-breathe-fire.
He wasn't setting it on fire, but was actually using his control over fire to prevent the house that Proton and I were in. It was massive in size, and totally not what I had expected to come attacking us in the night. And sure enough, it was like it knew it wouldn't be expected.
Instantly I recalled what I had read a few months back, in a book that was lying in the restricted section of the library. The Chimera, it read, is a deadly creature with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a venom-spitting snake's tail. Yep, deadly enough.
But it never said how to kill it.
So we were stuck. If we ran, it would probably chase us and burn us to a crisp. But if we didn't run, there was only one option - to stay and fight. And to hope for the best.
I took out my bow, aiming for its eyes, but its movement was so erratic the arrows got nowhere near them. Then the next part was to aim for the mouth, which left more room for errors. I managed to get a couple of arrows in its throat, but the fire came out and just burnt the sticks.
Yeah, those arrows were made of wood, obviously it could get burnt. There was only one weapon on me which couldn't be burnt - my sword. It seemed logical enough. After all, luck wasn't on my side since the time we left.
So I concentrated in where its mouth was, and I found a really subtle pattern, but it was a pattern nonetheless. It was something. So calculating the time my sword would take to close the distance between itself and the Chimera, I let it fly.
During that matter of nanoseconds I was weaponless, about a hundred thoughts streamed into my mind. Did I know the chances of missing? Why had I taken that risk? If it never worked what would I do? What could I do after that? But as suddenly as the thought started, they ended when I saw the Chimera disintegrate into yellow dust, and the sword clattered back to the ground from a height.
"Wow," I deadpanned.
"That's some cool shit. Like really cool shit," I heard Seth say, but I never believed him. He could have made the Chimera come, since fire and fire, and since he had actually volunteered to take first shift, it made me suspect him more. Why shouldn't I? After all people in the world rely on trickery and deception to succeed. This could merely be a test of my ability. Like me, killing one of the world's most oldest monsters straight from Greek mythology?
Unlikely. I was quite sure they weren't that easy to kill indeed. If only I could watch the re-play of what happened in slow motion, I would have noticed what actually happened to it. Maybe it was all part of Seth's 'magic package' that he got, somehow.
[Seth's POV]
Regret. That was one thing I thought I'd never do. I'd thought killing Alexia was the best idea - just to get her diamonds and to get revenge. I totally shouldn't have done that. Now it had ruined my chances of having Alexia as a friend, a close one to be specific.
I thought 'i was starting to like her a little. The awkwardness I felt around her - that was why I took first shift. To clear my mind and focus on what was happening, and not my little fantasies where I had never done anything negative at Alexia.
However, even though I had been pretty helpful to her since the start of the journey, she had been giving me cold stares, and only answering with single words. I noticed her keeping away, and she had somewhat intimidated me by her hazel-brown eyes, but that wasn't stopping me from liking her.
I couldn't stop thinking about her, but she was making it difficult. There probably wasn't any chance of getting her to like me. It was so hard - and now it was actually my fault for making things even harder. She looked like she thought I had made the Chimera problem, and so she looked distasteful and annoyed.
I just wanted to turn time back. To re-think my actions, so I wouldn't feel any regret. This, I learnt, was one of the worst feelings I could ever get. That slow sinking feeling but mixed with helplessness...that dropping of your heart and veins...that closing of your eyes and you just want to appear back at where you started to make things perfect.
Why...
Why must I be cursed with this feeling? I never felt good enough, even though I was the oldest. Why was life so unlucky since that day? That day when I was so sure I was correct, when I was so sure I could win... When I had the perfect plan. I choked on a sob.
Crap no, I couldn't be seen crying. That just wasn't me. But no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't work. I was aware of Proton and Alexia looking at me, and I was so tempted to just vaporise them. At least they wouldn't have to bother me again.
My thoughts blurred as I trudged along with them, and after a while, I found ourselves in a snowy place - jungle like, but instead covered in white snow where there were no footprints in sight. Just...snow. The sky was getting a little too dark, and it was half an hour after the sun had set. There were stars.
We were hiking uphill, the steepness increasing with every kilometer. My face was getting cold, and my lips were dry. Just as I turned, I saw Alexia shiver. I wrapped my sweater around her and she looked at me and whispered, "There's something not right. There's something here."
I wanted to ask her what was wrong, but a voice cut in. "Very good, my girl. Hunting has indeed improved your senses."
I recognised that voice. It was in my dreams, telling me what to do. It knew what I felt and thought, it knew what I wanted to do. It guided me since the start of the journey, and I was quite sure Proton was to.
I turned to the direction of the voice, and saw a girl, about 18, standing in front of me. She was wearing a black knee-length dress with a hood. Her skin was ghostly pale, but her eyes couldn't be seen.
"Who are you?" I said.
"I am Akari, goddess of light," came the reply. She never moved forward, but stood in the shadows. The irony of that...
"Hah, goddess of 'light', you mean," I mocked.
She lifted her hood and revealed her platinum blonde hair and her dark eyes. "Darkness is just the absence of light."
Aaa okay thanks for reading 3
